LONG BLACK VEIL

Live 26 Apr 2006 version



[Spoken intro:] There must be some way out of here, said the joker to the thief

Bruce Springsteen:Well ten years ago, on a cold dark night
There was someone killed 'neath the town hall light
There were few at the scene, yeah but they all agreed
That the man who ran looked a lot like me

Bruce Springsteen:Well she walks these hills in a long black veil
Visits my grave where the night winds wail — Say it!
Nobody knows, darling, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me

Marc Anthony Thompson:The judge said, "Son what is your alibi
If you were somewhere else, then you don't have to die"
I said not a word, though it crushed my life
'Cause I was in the arms of my best friend's wife

All:She walks these hills in a long black veil
She visits my grave where the night winds wail
Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me

All:She walks these hills in a long black veil
She visits my grave where the night winds wail
Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me

Bruce Springsteen:Well the gallows were close and eternity near
She stood in the crowd and she shed not a tear
Springsteen and Thomson:Sometimes at night when the cold winds blow
In a long black veil she cries over my bones

Springsteen and Patti Scialfa:She walks these hills in a long black veil
She visits my grave where the night winds wail
Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me

All:Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me
Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me
Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me

Info

LONG BLACK VEIL is a song originally released by Lefty Frizzell in 1959. See the original Lefty Frizzell version for more details.

Matt Orel wrote in the issue #86 (Spring 2007) of Backstreets magazine that LONG BLACK VEIL was considered for inclusion on the American Land Edition of the We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions album.

Live 26 Apr 2006 version

The above lyrics are for the live 26 Apr 2006 performance of LONG BLACK VEIL at Convention Hall in Asbury Park, NJ, during a public rehearsal show for The Seeger Sessions Tour.

Ticket stub for the 26 Apr 2006 show at Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ
Ticket stub for the 26 Apr 2006 show at Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ
(Taken from Brucebase)
Handwritten setlist for the 26 Apr 2006 show at Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ
Handwritten setlist for the 26 Apr 2006 show at Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ

Live History

In preparation for The Seeger Sessions Tour, LONG BLACK VEIL was performed during one of the tour's four public warm-up rehearsal shows that took place in April 2006 in Asbury Park. The song is also known to have been practiced during at least one of the private rehearsals that took place in Mar-Apr 2006 in Asbury Park prior to the tour's first leg, and during at least one of the private rehearsals that took place in September 2006 in Asbury Park prior to the tour's second European leg.

  1. 21 Mar 2006 at Paramount Theatre, Asbury Park, NJ (private rehearsal)
  2. 26 Apr 2006 at Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ (public rehearsal)
  3. 20 Sep 2006 at Paramount Theatre, Asbury Park, NJ (private rehearsal)

LONG BLACK VEIL was performed 9 times during The Seeger Sessions Tour (56 dates, April to November 2006).

  1. 08 May 2006 at Hammersmith Apollo, London, England
  2. 16 May 2006 at Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
  3. 17 May 2006 at Festhalle, Frankfurt, Germany
  4. 21 May 2006 at Hovet, Stockholm, Sweden
  5. 11 Jun 2006 at Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, MN
  6. 13 Jun 2006 at First Midwest Bank Amphitheater, Tinley Park, IL
  7. 20 Jun 2006 at Tweeter Center At The Waterfront, Camden, NJ
  8. 25 Jun 2006 at PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ
  9. 10 Oct 2006 at Palalottomatica, Rome, Italy

Available Versions

List of available versions of LONG BLACK VEIL on this website:

LONG BLACK VEIL [Live 26 Apr 2006 version]
LONG BLACK VEIL [Live 11 Jun 2006 version]
LONG BLACK VEIL [Original Lefty Frizzell version]

Page last updated: 14 Dec 2015